[LennyAswall]

Hey all,

I have a 2015 M235i and it has 132k KMs on it. The transmission shifts smoothly with no issues but I was wondering if its a good idea to do a fluid change. I have no idea if the previous owner did a fluid change already but I'm assuming not since BMW claims it's 'lifetime' fluid.

Should I still go ahead and change it? And does anyone know a good shop that would use the right fluid & change the pan for the filter in Ontario Canada that's reasonably priced? I'd do it myself but to remove the pan on jack stands doesn't look all that fun. Rather get someone with a lift to do it and deal with the oily mess

UPDATE: Did the fluid change at 132k kms, shifts smoothly!
Thanks for all the feedback

[LennyAswall]

bump:

Would it be okay to change the fluid at my mileage? I'll likely ask the shop to maybe inspect it first before doing the actual fluid change.

Contacted a transmission shop and they quoted $420 CAD for the service. Going in next week to ask to set up an appointment and confirm its the Pan/filter that will be changed and the fluid is indeed ZF8 lifeguard. Likely will ask them to do the transfer case and diff fluid as well.

[Liandri]

I definitely recommend you do. I changed mine (myself, zf pan and lifeguard8) when I bought the car, a couple times to be sure. Little bit of upfront cost, but peace of mind, as it's an expensive trans. At your mileage, definitely, as zf says every 30k if I'm not mistaken. BMW says lifetime because cost of ownership and marketing. It's not hard at all to change it, but tell your mechanic to let the car run after the initial fill/level for a long time as there's a cooler thermostat that opens at 170f. After the thermostat opens (temp can be read on scan tool), relevel the trans after it's cooled down to the correct check temp, then it's good to go!

[mcompact]

I spoke with a ZF tech who recommended a 60,000mile change interval. The ZF Service Information recommends a change at 80,000 km to 120,000 km- or eight years at the latest.

[wjjkoevoets]

I had mine serviced at ZF at 100k km. It's worth it for the peace of mind alone.

[The_otherM235i]

My cars at 62 thousand kms and I'll probably do it at 80 thousand kms

[Bibopp]

Yes it's a good idea but always and only use genuine ZF oil.

And a very important thing, DO NOT process a reset of the gearbox adaptations values. Even if the shop or the technician tell you that it's good to do it after an oil change, it's not.

https://www.xhpflashtool.com/blog/adaptions/

[gosi]

Where does it say to not reset adaptations specifically after a fluid change, and not a gearbox reflash?

[Liandri]

Originally Posted by gosi

Where does it say to not reset adaptations specifically after a fluid change, and not a gearbox reflash?

Read the link above. Don't reset adaptations ever

[gosi]

It doesn’t say that anywhere. Also reseting adaptations is standard procedure when changing transmission fluid.

[BostonM235xi]

You never reset transmission adaptions 👍🏻

[Liandri]

Originally Posted by gosi

It doesn’t say that anywhere. Also reseting adaptations is standard procedure when changing transmission fluid.

Seriously? That's the entire point of xhp's article. If clutch packs are worn too far the tcu may refuse to perform a shift at all after the adaptations are zeroed. Stop spreading misinformation and being so sure of it. I can assure you being a career mechanic that resetting transmission adaptations on any make or model is NOT standard or recommended procedure, and I've done hundreds of services on all modern types of transmissions each time reading the exact procedure outlined by the manufacturer. Your not even accomplishing anything by resetting adaptations, because if you do, it will relearn to the exact values as when you wiped it. The only thing gained is the risk of bricking the trans.

[gosi]

I've read the above article, twice, and you are misunderstanding it. All it says is that resetting adaptations when *flashing* the gearbox is not a good idea. Which is obvious since you are only modifying software and the adaptations serve as to calibrate the clutches within initial manufacturing variance of each gearbox and through time as they age and wear. All of which is stated on XHP's website.

Your first argument that if you reset adaptations on a badly worn transmission, it wouldn't want to shift anymore is the same idea as not changing the fluid on an old transmission for fear of it starting to slip. Both these arguments concern old transmissions and are of course valid. But not really relevant here. Both resetting adaptations and changing fluid does the same thing in a sense in that it alters how the clutches behave. If they are already worn, then there is no point in doing anything.

Bricking the transmission? Well yes, in the same way you risk damaging your car anytime you work on it.

I've read the official ZF instructions for changing the fluid and there is no mention of resetting the adaptations, yes. At my local dealership, I'm located in Europe btw, they recommend to reset the adaptations with every fluid change. And advise to drive slowly the first few kilometres for the transmission to adapt. The idea is that the transmission will be able to adapt to the new frictional properties of the oil faster.

When I changed my fluid two weeks ago, I didn't reset the adaptations right away and noticed some rougher than usual shifting from 1st to 2nd and 2nd to 3rd afterwards. I went back and did the reset, took it easy for the first drive and my transmission is now shifting as usual. I'm sure it would adapt on its own even without the reset, but I certainly don't see any harm in doing it...